YOUNG scientists from Parkend Primary School have been given a head start in developing their research and recording skills by conducting experiments with the help of teachers from The Dean Academy.

Pupils from Classes 1, 2 and 3 at Parkend have recently taken part in science workshops with staff from the Lydney school, in which they investigated the strength of different materials.

The academy visited Class 2 just before Christmas and returned to the school in March to carry out further workshops with Classes 1 and 3.

The experiments involved testing the strength of different types of plastic bag, by attaching weights to one end and seeing how much each sample could bear before they started to stretch and break.

The school says the concept “feeds nicely” into the investigation that the students will do in their GCSE years on Hooke’s Law about the stretching of springs.

The experiments provided the young children with opportunities to develop many key scientific skills that they will use later on in their studies, such as measuring, data recording and handling, graph drawing and conclusion making skills.

And the pupils who took part in the workshops were encouraged by the results of their experiments, with some of the reusable materials proving the strongest.

Henry Burrows said: “It was fun because it was exciting!”

Ariya-Jade Schroeder commented: “It was good because the reusable plastic was the strongest.”

Keelan Pickett said: “It was something I will never forget.”

And Sam Hitchins added: “I was intrigued by this fun experiment and it made me want to do experiments at home.”